Social Science Research Assistants in South Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$52,038
after federal, FICA and South Carolina tax
Tax takes
$12,452
19.3% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$55,848
South Carolina costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in South Carolina — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$64,490
Kept after tax
$52,038
Worth in national money
$55,848
State rank
11
of 45 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. South Carolina pays social science research assistants a middle wage of $64,490, ranking 11 of 45 states and sitting about 4.03% above the national middle.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 492 occupations South Carolina reports figures for, this is number 163.
- Here is where South Carolina does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $64,490 you keep $52,038, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $55,848 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $73,790, because the best-paid pull it up.
- South Carolina's median for social science research assistants is $64,490, about 4.03% above the national figure and 11 of 45 states reporting. Whether that premium reaches the worker depends on the two adjustments below, which is the part a wage table cannot tell you.
- In South Carolina's occupational distribution, social science research assistants sits at 163 of 492 — neither quartile. This local position is what a resident compares against, and it is determined by the state's own labor market rather than by national patterns for this occupation.
- After federal, FICA and South Carolina income tax, retained pay for social science research assistants on $64,490 is $52,038. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $55,848 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $73,790 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
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Pay band: Social Science Research Assistants
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $48,200 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $64,490 |
| Top tenth earn over | $130,300 |
| This salary | $64,490 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in South Carolina | $52,038 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $53,998 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$281 |
The raise and the real gain point in opposite directions here.
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $62,051 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$340 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 93 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in South Carolina earn less than $64,490. The published range is $48,200 up to $130,300, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind South Carolina's $52,038, worked from $64,490. That is on purpose. It lets states be compared with each other, not with each other's family circumstances. Local city taxes are left out. Locally this work ranks 163 of 492.
- One number stands for prices across all of South Carolina, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $55,848, the adjusted value of that $64,490 median, as a way to compare states fairly, not as a quote for any particular place. The two datasets are also from different years. This job sits at 163 of 492 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for social science research assistants in South Carolina the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $48,200 to $130,300. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The South Carolina take-home of $52,038, on $64,490 for work ranking 163 of 492 locally, models the simplest household deliberately: holding it constant is what makes the interstate comparison meaningful. It also means the absolute figure overstates liability for most real filers, and municipal income taxes are outside the model entirely. The occupation ranks 163 of 492 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for South Carolina, so $55,848 — the adjusted value of that $64,490 median — establishes comparability between states rather than accuracy within one. The wage and parity series are dated independently, each following its own publication cycle, and neither is projected forward. This occupation sits at 163 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $73,790, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $48,200 at the bottom tenth to $130,300 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. South Carolina is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $55,848 in national terms.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and South Carolina's own levy, $52,038 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
Because the survey suppresses a figure when too few employers report it. This occupation has published pay in 45 states — the rest are withheld to protect confidentiality, which is not the same as nobody doing the work there.
How does the published median differ from the mean for this occupation?
The median is the midpoint of the distribution; the mean for this occupation in South Carolina is $73,790. Wage distributions are right-skewed, so the mean exceeds the median wherever a minority earn substantially more. BLS publishes both because substituting one for the other misstates a typical worker's pay.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($48,200) and the ninetieth ($130,300) exceeds the family median dispersion. SOC codes aggregate roles differing in seniority, industry and specialisation, and BLS does not disaggregate below the detailed occupation level, so within-title variance is not separable from the published series.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
South Carolina's regional price parity is at or below the national average, so nominal wages understate purchasing power. Take-home deflated by the state price level is $55,848 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $52,038 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and South Carolina income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Why does this occupation lack published estimates in every state?
BLS suppresses estimates failing disclosure or reliability criteria. This occupation has published state-level estimates in 45 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.